China
Niels Peter Thomas + Official Climate Plan
Dear reader,
the strengthening of technology and science was, along with the introduction of the market economy, the biggest factor in China's successes after 1978. After the Cultural Revolution, mathematics at China's universities was at the level of German high school lessons. As we all know, things have turned around since then. China's schools and universities are world-class, and the country's IT companies rank far ahead of their German competitors, where they exist at all.
In the CEO Talk with China.Table, Niels Peter Thomas talks about an important aspect of the science business: publishing. He heads the China branch of the publishing house Springer Nature, which publishes important journals. According to Thomas, the rise of Chinese science is currently entering a new phase. He has seen a rapid increase in the number of outstanding publications. Returnees from foreign universities have brought the methods and spirit of science to China. A new generation is now on a par with fellow researchers in the US and Europe. The positive effect: "Diversity is increasing."
But Thomas also looks beyond his field of expertise. Particularly when it comes to scientific cooperation, he sees no trend towards compartmentalisation. At a time when China seems increasingly inaccessible, that's good news. "The population continues to be incredibly open-minded and curious about the world," says Thomas, adding that no one here is interested in a confrontation with the West.
